Why Zinc is Important and How Much Do You Need

 

When we hear zinc – most of us think of it as an important ingredient in natural cold remedies. When what really makes it important for your health is that zinc is an essential mineral in your diet, with recommended daily allowances for men of 11mg and for women, 8mg.  However, your body has no way to store zinc; therefore, it's important to make sure you're getting the daily recommended amounts. Luckily, zinc is present in some foods and available as a supplement, so it doesn't take much work to make sure you're getting enough.

It’s important to get the recommended amounts of zinc, because it plays a number of crucial functions in your body:

• Accelerates the activity of approximately 100 different body enzymes
• Promotes immune function to fight illness
• Supports healthy cell growth and development
• Ensures proper sense of taste and smell

Most of us get zinc from meat and poultry. Other great sources for zinc include beans, nuts, oysters, crab, lobster, whole grains, fortified breakfast cereals, and dairy products. If these foods aren’t a regular part of your diet; adding zinc supplements are an easy and inexpensive alternative.

While most of us don't need to be concerned about zinc deficiency - two groups that should take special note are pregnant women and vegetarians. Both are likely to require more daily zinc than the average individual. Vegetarians commonly eat a lot of legumes and whole grains, which contain phytates that bind zinc and inhibit its absorption in the body. This means vegetarians may require 50% more of the recommended daily allowance for zinc than non-vegetarians. Pregnant women are also at increased risk of becoming zinc insufficient partly because of high fetal requirements for zinc. Breast feeding can also deplete zinc in the body - so lactating women should aim for about 12 mg of zinc a day.

In addition to helping with immunity, growth, and development, zinc is a great mineral for men because it appears to play an important role in maintaining prostate health. Prostate cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer deaths in American men, and most elderly men have some abnormal prostate cells, so researchers are increasingly interested in ways to protect the prostate. Although the exact function of zinc in the prostate is unknown, what we do know about zinc is that:

• The human prostate accumulates the highest level of zinc of any soft tissue in the body (although researchers aren't sure why)
• Cancerous prostates seem to have less zinc than normal prostates
• Some studies show that increased dietary zinc is associated with a decrease in the incidence of prostate cancer
• Severe zinc deficiency can affect testosterone and could lead to impotence

OneLifeUSA carries a Kosher Zinc Lozenge (tablet) product.  Each tablet has a natural orange flavor and contains 10mg of zinc per tablet.
Don’t overdo it. Try to keep your zinc intake under the upper limit of 40 mg a day, for both men and women. It is always advisable to discuss taking any over-the-counter products with your primary health care professional.

---